Speculative Fiction—an all-encompassing genre created to describe stories of science fiction, fantasy, alternate history, and other stories that have an element of “What if...” in them. A story in speculative fiction is one that adds an element of the unreal, or asks, what would become of our society if history took a different direction at some important event? Fiction with a little something extra thrown in.—William D. Richards

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Saturday, April 30, 2016

It’s that time of the month again, time for “Indie Speculative Fiction of the Month”.

So
what is “Indie Speculative Fiction of the Month”? It’s a round-up of
speculative fiction by indie authors newly published this month, though
some March books I missed the last time around snuck in as well. The
books are arranged in alphabetical order by author. So far, most links
only go to Amazon.com, though I may add other retailers for future
editions.

He
may be the DeathSpeaker, but Gideon Black has no idea what he's doing.
The job didn't come with an instruction manual. That's why his
half-brother Taeral plans to bring him across the Veil to the Fae realm
of Arcadia, to consult with an ancient Fae who knew the previous
DeathSpeaker personally.

Those plans are violently interrupted
when the royal Unseelie Guard invade their home, dragging Taeral and
their father, Daoin, to Arcadia ahead of schedule. And Gideon will do
anything to get them back.

But the concrete jungles of Manhattan
are nothing compared to the threats waiting in Arcadia. Facing deadly
wildlife, even deadlier enemies, and magic he never imagined possible,
Gideon must learn quickly to wield his power as both a Fae and the
DeathSpeaker -- before the vengeful Unseelie Queen can exact a cost
higher than death from his family, and everyone he holds dear.

Double Feature by Cora Buhlert:
1956:
Judy is the designated town slut of Stillwater Creek. After getting
thrown out of a sock hop at the local high school, Judy winds up going
to the movies with bad boy Hank instead, where a science fiction double
feature is playing. However, before the first reel of the second movie
is through, the night is interrupted by a very real invasion of flying
saucers from outer space…

Student
Robert James never asked to be bitten. He didn't want to be the leader
of a new breed of vampires. Thing is: he wasn't offered a choice.

Survival
and destiny combine when Robert finds himself under threat from a
mysterious cult known as the Dawn Warriors. Within months, many of those
he cares about are dead and he vows to fight back without mercy. Robert
unearths terrible truths and confronts eternal evils that threaten to
break him. He may not succeed in defeating the Dawn Warriors, but he has
no choice but to try.

'The Young Vampire's Survival Guide' is the
first book in the 'New Breed Vampires' book series. Described as "Anne
Rice meets Kelley Armstrong", it is set in London and Manchester and
written in British English. It's gruesome, compelling, horrifying and
uplifting vampire fiction.

She's
a centuries-old vampire, and he's been a werewolf hybrid for about
three weeks. They've left a trail of bodies and a shattered supernatural
treaty in their wake, and they're having major communication problems.
And when the full moon rises, things are going to get a whole lot worse.

From the author of YOUR NAME, IN FIRE, this stand-alone novella pays homage to classic Urban Fantasy traditions.

Rhisia
Sen is one of the Empire’s highest paid assassins. Living a life of
luxury, she chooses her contracts carefully, working to amass enough
wealth so she can leave her bloody trade. She is offered a new contract
on the outskirts of civilization, and almost refuses—until she sees the
purse. It could be the last job she ever has to take.

But when she reaches the destination, she discovers her mark is a child.

The
contract, and her reputation, demand she kill the boy—if she can banish
his innocent face from her mind. But another assassin has been sent to
kill her, and a notorious bounty hunter is on her trail. She doesn’t
know why the boy is a target, or why her former employer wants her dead.
Saving the child could be her only chance at survival.

Assassin's Charge is a stand-alone novel, set in the same world as the Echoes of Imara series. It can be enjoyed with or without having read the other books in the series.

For the Wildings by Kyra Halland:
In
the conclusion of Daughter of the Wildings, Silas and Lainie recover
from their ordeal in Granadaia, while knowing that an evil is at work
that threatens the freedom of the Wildings and that this peaceful
interval is no more than a brief illusion. Then the unthinkable happens,
the battle begins, and Lainie, the daughter of the Wildings, and Silas,
the man she has claimed for herself and for the land, have to draw on
all their power and strength - and on the life of the land itself - to
protect their beloved Wildings and the people who make it their home.

Coronation by Kevin Hardman:
As
the grandson of the alien princess Indigo, Jim (aka Kid Sensation) has
always known that, technically, he’s royalty. That said, he’d be the
first to admit that he’s never lived any kind of regal lifestyle – no
titles, no castles, no crown jewels… However, the arrival of a courier
from his grandmother’s homeworld changes all of that in an instant.

By
royal edict, Jim is summoned “home” to the distant planet Caeles in
order to claim an alien inheritance. Unfortunately, this is no warm and
cuddly family reunion. Caeles is a hotbed of political intrigue, and
Jim’s arrival has widespread ramifications. Not only are several
factions attempting to utilize his very existence as leverage to advance
their own agendas, but Jim himself is required to submit to an archaic
trial known as a prexetus. Moreover, while some are content with simply
trying to use him, it quickly becomes apparent that at least one shadowy
individual just wants Jim out of the way – quickly, completely, and
permanently.

Light years from Earth, with little family and fewer
friends, Jim faces the daunting task of finding an enemy whose ultimate
purpose is unknown and whose methods are extreme. Complicating matters
even further is the fact that Jim’s much-heralded super powers are
glitching, making him incredibly vulnerable for perhaps the first time
in his life.

Trapped
in a cheap restaurant with a small band of other elderly survivors,
Everett is forced to decide if he’ll fight for whatever scraps of a
future remain, or if he will simply… let go.

LET GO is a short story of approximately 10,000 words.

Barrow Fiend by Amy Hopkins:
When
Emma is approached by DCI Greyson to assist with a case, her first
instinct is to say no. Still shaken by the attack on her life six months
earlier, and balancing her friendships with a budding relationship,
she'd prefer to stay clear of the danger.

However, circumstances
force her hand and she throws herself into the investigation. She soon
realises that her target isn't a mysterious creature, but a dangerous
man without the slightest care for human life...
Can Emma survive the biggest risk she's ever faced, or will she have to sacrifice too much?

Bailey
and Chloe head back on the road, where they come across strange
markings belonging to a group intent on bloodshed and abduction. With
this heinous enemy lurking in the shadows, they seek help in new and old
friends along the way.

When they arrive at Hargrove, nothing is
what it seems inside the makeshift, post-apocalyptic community. People
are turning up dead, and for once, zombies aren't the ones to blame.
Fingers are pointed, everyone is a suspect, and no one is safe outside
or inside these walls.

Borrowed Tides by Paul Levinson:
The
first starship to Alpha Centauri in 2029 uses a new technology which
can move it through deep space at almost half the speed of light. But it
requires an enormous amount of fuel, and can only carry enough for a
one-way trip. A philosopher of science and his childhood friend, an
anthropologist with a specialty in Native American culture, have a
daringly bizarre plan, and talk the government into putting them in
charge of the Light Through starship voyage.

In
August’s world, everything was created by a single, secular god. HE—the
creator of everything. However, HE left the world to be ruled with a
subtle, iron fist by less powerful gods.

It had been two years
since August stepped foot into his hometown, Sotira. It had also been
that long since he’d last visited his father, seen his crooked smile,
and felt those familial ties.

He wished he didn’t have to return.
However, at the request of his girlfriend and his family, he was heading
back home. To a place where the foundations themselves were built with
false truths, hidden behind the ‘utopia’ the gods supposedly created. He
knew fear lay under all that outward, deceitful happiness—a terror that
Sotira would be next to come under the wrath of the gods.

When
August arrived home, he wasn’t prepared for what he found. His best
friend had been hanged and turned into a monument in the middle of town
by the order of his father and the gods. The world he thought he knew
had been turned upside down. To turn it right again, August would do
anything… even start down the path that would allow him to gain the
power to kill God.

Liz
Jekyll might be the most wanted werewolf in London—wanted for dating,
that is—but she doesn’t take it as a compliment. In fact, it’s a
wretched nuisance because Liz has a vital secret to hide. What she needs
is a disinterested werewolf who could pretend to be her boyfriend.

Carson
Erving would be very interested in Liz if it weren’t for Gentiana
Aeternae. The botanist werewolf from Alabama has found the legendary
Elixir Gentian, and ruthless people will do anything, kill anyone, to
get their hands on a plant that can grant an extra hundred years of
life.

As danger explodes around them, two very independent
werewolves will have to do the unthinkable and rely on one another. But
when Liz’s secret is revealed, who will die?

Demon Magic & Mayhem by Stella Wilkinson:
You
know that feeling when you think life is pretty darn perfect, and then a
werewolf savages your best friend and a ridiculously sexy demon drags
your boyfriend off to hell with her? No? Just me then…

Young witch
Emily Rand is back doing what she does best - blundering her way
through paranormal mishaps with limited magic and mixed luck. But with
her crow on her shoulder, and a ghost by her side, Emily’s not about to
let some demonic vixen kidnap and keep the hot werewolf that holds her
heart.

Friday, April 29, 2016

Here is our weekly round-up of interesting links about speculative
fiction from
around the web, this week with discussions about the Hugo and Clarke Awards shortlist, reactions to Captain America: Civil War, Orphan Black and the season premiere of Game of Thrones as well as the usual mix of writing advice,
interviews, reviews, con
reports and crowdfunding projects as well as free online fiction.

Monday, April 25, 2016

About Double Feature:

1956: Judy is the designated town slut of Stillwater Creek. After
getting thrown out of a sock hop at the local high school, Judy winds up
going to the movies with bad boy Hank instead, where a science fiction
double feature is playing. However, before the first reel of the second
movie is through, the night is interrupted by a very real invasion of
flying saucers from outer space…

This is a novelette of 8500 words or approx. 30 print pages.

Excerpt:

Hank picked just this moment to nuzzle my neck, a mirror image of
what the portentous guy was doing to his newly wed wife. Only that
Hank’s hands were roaming under my sweater again, something that no man,
no matter how square-jawed and heroic, would ever dare do in the
movies.
“They’ve got the right idea,” Hank mumbled, “This is boring.”
I had to agree with him. If I watched a movie called Earth vs. the Flying Saucers, I wanted flying saucers and a lecture about satellites and three-stage rockets.
So I made out with Hank some more, while the portentous guy droned on
and on, until he was finally drowned out by a whirring sound.
Hank and I didn’t much care. We were busy.
We finally had to come up for air — just in time to see that the car
of Mr. and Mrs. Portentous was being assaulted by a flying saucer.
“Whoa,” I exclaimed and jumped in my seat just a little.
“Now that’s more like it,” Hank said, “Hmm, racing against a flying saucer, now that would be a coup.”
On the screen, Mrs. Portentous stammered, “Did… did I just see a flying saucer?”
I sighed. Not very smart, was she?
“Yes, you did, nitwit,” I said, “We saw it, too.”
Hank began nuzzling my neck again, while Mr. and Mrs. Portentous
argued about whether the clearly visible flying saucer that had just
attacked their car had really been a flying saucer.
I never learned whether Mr. and Mrs. Portentous eventually agreed
that what they had seen had really been a flying saucer. Nor did I ever
learn how the movie ended or who won, Earth or the flying saucers.
Because at just that moment, the doors to the auditorium were flung open
and Charlie and Freddy appeared, running down the aisle and waving
their hands.
“Guys, guys, you’ve got to see this! It… it’s a flying saucer!”
Hank turned around, clearly annoyed.
“No need to yell. We’re watching the movie, you know?”
“No. I mean… it’s a flying saucer,” Charlie repeated, “A real flying saucer. Outside.”
At first, I thought it was some kind of publicity stunt. After all,
my Mom had told me how when she was pregnant with me, she’d heard on the
radio that aliens had landed in New Jersey and were attacking the
country. It sounded totally real and my Mom got so scared that she
promptly went into labour. But then it turned out that it was all a
hoax, just a publicity stunt to promote a radio play and that there
really weren’t any aliens, neither in New Jersey or elsewhere.
“Oh please,” I said, “You don’t think we’re going to fall for that one, do you?”
“And now shut up and let us watch the movie in peace or I’ll give you a load of knuckle sandwich,” Hank added.
“No, it’s true — really, it is,” Freddy replied. His cheeks were
reddened with excitement, highlighting his pimples. “There’s a flying
saucer right outside above the town square. It’s huge…” His hands
stretched out like those of a fisherman bragging about the size of the
fish he’d caught. “…and really, you’ve got to see for yourselves.”
With that, Freddy ran out of the auditorium again, followed by Charlie.
Hank and I exchanged a glance, while on the screen, Mr. and Mrs. Portentous had moved on to some kind of laboratory setting.
“It’s probably nothing, but…”
“Can’t hurt to take a look,” Hank completed, “And besides, the movie
is boring anyway. And a real life flying saucer is cooler than a movie.”
“You don’t honestly believe that there’s a real flying saucer out there, do you?”
“Nope.” Hank shrugged. “But it would be cool.”

About Cora Buhlert:

Cora Buhlert was
born and bred in North Germany, where she still lives today – after time
spent in London, Singapore, Rotterdam and Mississippi. Cora holds an MA
degree in English from the University of Bremen and is currently
working towards her PhD. Cora has been writing since she was a teenager,
and has published stories, articles and poetry in various international
magazines. When she is not writing, she works as a translator and
teacher.

Friday, April 22, 2016

Here is our weekly round-up of interesting links about speculative
fiction from
around the web, this week with comments on Orphan Black and Supergirl, tributes to Prince, early reactions to Captain America: Civil War as well as the usual mix of writing advice,
interviews, reviews, con
reports and crowdfunding projects as well as free online fiction.

Tuesday, April 19, 2016

About Borrowed Tides:

The first starship to Alpha Centauri in 2029 uses a new technology which
can move it through deep space at almost half the speed of light. But
it requires an enormous amount of fuel, and can only carry enough for a
one-way trip. A philosopher of science and his childhood friend, an
anthropologist with a specialty in Native American culture, have a
daringly bizarre plan, and talk the government into putting them in
charge of the Light Through starship voyage.

Excerpt:

The
white birches and slender oaks were the corner's last stand. They fell in the
Spring of 1964 to bulldozers and brusque men—a construction crew clearing the
last of the lot on Bronx Park East for the high-rise that Aaron Schoenfeld
would soon be inhabiting.

Aaron
surveyed the rubble with mixed emotions. His apartment would have a terrace
that jutted way out over the park—"a view straight to the Hudson,"
his father had been telling everyone. There would be two bathrooms—no more
waiting for his sister to stop staring at her face in the mirror. He liked all
that. But he didn't like what happened to the trees.

"The
people who used to live here said there were moon spirits in those pale
trees," a quiet voice said to Aaron. He turned to see a kid with burnt-brown
eyes.

"People?"
Aaron didn't usually have conversations with kids this young. The kid looked to
be about ten or eleven, three or so years younger than Aaron. The kid sounded
much older.

"Yeah,
Indians," the kid said. "Years of Indian history are being wiped out
here."

"How
do you know there were Indians right here? I don't see any teepees."

Aaron
was instantly sorry he'd said that. He could see the kid struggling with
whether to walk away from him or share his secrets. And something about the
kid's intensity made Aaron want to hear more.

The
kid reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out a few pieces of chipped,
flinty stone. "Arrowheads," he said, "made by the people whose
main lands were in Pelham Bay. I found them right here."

"How'd
you know to look here?" Aaron asked. "I mean, even before this
construction, it was just a—"

"I
could see the signs," the kid said. "I live right down the
block." He pointed to a small semi-detached house, with a big off-white
hibiscus in front that looked like it had been watered by every mutt in the
neighborhood. "This place was my backyard. I spend a lot of time
here."

"Did
you tell anyone about the arrowheads?"

"Who'm
I gonna tell?" The kid gestured to the construction crew, just about
packed up and ready to leave for the day. "I tried to talk to the foreman
once, but he laughed in my face. Why should anyone pay any attention to what I
say?"

The
kid shook it with a tight grip. "Jack Lumet." He smiled for the first
time. Aaron could tell this was a rarity.

"The
only reason you're even listening to me is that you're notmuch older than I am," Jack said.

"You're
a smart kid," Aaron said.

"It's
not that I'm against tall buildings or stuff like that," Jack said.
"I just wish they could build these things where they don't hurt what's
already here."

Aaron
thought about the birches. He thought about a Spring afternoon years earlier,
when he was four or five, and saw a crew building part of the Bronx River
Parkway. He'd cried when he saw them blast away a field of buttercups.

"Don't
worry—they'll plant new ones," his father had said.

But
new ones—deliberately planted ones—weren't the same. They lacked something of
wildflowers.

So
Aaron understood that day what Jack Lumet was saying.

But he also knew that he was very much
looking forward to seeing the Hudson from his terrace, looking forward to the
clearer view of the stars that he imagined his new outpost would provide. And
if his high-rise weren't built here, then where else? Everywhere you looked,
there was something that people wanted to keep, didn't want to build over.

In the spring of 1964, wildflowers were
still in long supply in the Bronx.

About Paul Levinson:

Paul Levinson, PhD, is Professor of Communication & Media Studies at Fordham University in NYC. His science fiction novels include The Silk Code(winner of Locus Award for Best First Science Fiction Novel of 1999, author’s cut ebook 2012), Borrowed Tides (2001), The Consciousness Plague (2002, 2013), The Pixel Eye (2003, 2014), The Plot To Save Socrates(2006, 2012), Unburning Alexandria (2013), and Chronica
(2014) - the last three of which are also known as the Sierra Waters trilogy, and are historical as well as science fiction. His nonfiction books, including The Soft Edge(1997), Digital McLuhan(1999),Realspace (2003), Cellphone (2004), and New New Media(2009; 2nd edition, 2012), have been translated into twelve languages. He appears on CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, the Discovery Channel, National Geographic, the History Channel, NPR, and numerous TV and radio programs. His 1972 LP, Twice Upon a Rhyme, was re-issued in 2010. He was President of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, 1998-2001. He reviews television in his InfiniteRegress.tv blog, and was listed in The Chronicle of Higher Education's "Top 10 Academic Twitterers" in 2009.

Monday, April 18, 2016

About Lovers' Lane:

1956. After a sock hop at the local high school gym, teenagers Betty and
Cody drive out to Lovers' Lane together. Betty knows only too well that
good girls don't go to Lovers' Lane with boys. But Cody is her one true
love and besides, he swore that he'd love her forever or may he be
struck down where he stands. But then, an alien invasion shows Betty
just what Cody's word is truly worth…

This is a short story of 6200 words or approx. 20 print pages.

Excerpt:

The radio gave out first, static drowning out Mickey Mantle’s latest home run, before it suddenly went dead altogether.
I sighed under my breath. It was going to be a long night.
Next came the humming, a low and ominous rumble in the distance, like an oncoming thunderstorm.
Finally came the light, brilliant, blinding, streaming in through the
windows and blanking out the night sky, almost as if we’d parked right
next to a floodlight.
“Crap,” I thought, “It’s the cops.”
For the cops sometimes patrolled Lovers’ Lane and shone into the
parked cars with their flashlights. And now they’d found us, Cody and
me, doing sinful and dirty things here at Lovers’ Lane. And everyone
would know…
My poking and the radio dying hadn’t woken up Cody, but the light
did. He suddenly jerked upright, banging against the steering wheel in
the process, and stared out of the car window, blinking against the
lights.
“What… the… hell?”
I was still pinned underneath Cody, so I couldn’t see. “Is… is it the cops?” I whispered.
Cody shook his head. “No. Something a lot weirder.”
He shifted aside, so I could finally sit up, could finally see. So I
crawled right up to the driver’s side window and pressed my nose against
the glass.
“Oh my freaking God!”
For there, hanging in the night sky above the town, was a flying
saucer, a bona-fide flying saucer. It was enormous, its diameter easily
eclipsing the entire town, and lit up like a Christmas tree all over. On
its bottom, there were more lights, gigantic spotlights brighter than
the floodlights at the Yankee Stadium in far off New York City, where
Mickey Mantle was probably still scoring home runs. And all of those
lights were trained on the town, lighting up the streets brighter than
the sun on a midsummer noon.
We both scrambled out of the car. I pulled up my panties and smoothed
down my skirt or rather I tried, for my best dress was hopelessly
wrinkled by now. Even worse, the once pristine white organdy skirt was
now marred by an ugly bloodstain. I swore under my breath. Of all the
stupid times to get my period.
I hoped, prayed that Cody wouldn’t notice. But I needn’t have
worried, for Cody’s attention was riveted on the UFO floating above the
town.
Together, we stepped up right to the very edge of Sighing Pine Ridge
and looked out across the town below and the saucer hovering above.
Under the bright spotlights of the saucer, we could see the people of
the town running about in the streets, looking so much like those
little miniature toy figurines in my little brother’s train set.
Occasionally, beams of red light would stab down from the underside
of the saucer. They looked quite beautiful really, surprisingly
beautiful. When one of those beams hit the street, it would explode in a
shower of gravel and dust. But should they hit a building instead, that
building would suddenly burst into flames.
“Death rays,” Cody whispered, “They’ve got death rays.”
“More like fire rays,” I whispered back.
They were doing their job, too, for several houses in town were
already in flames. The general store was burning, the first Baptist
church, the movie theatre and the bank as well as several homes. Another
beam stabbed down from the saucer and the gas station exploded in a
shower of sparks and flames, hurling cars all over the street. One hit
the front of the post office and got stuck halfway through the red brick
façade.
“Oh shit!” Cody suddenly exclaimed and it was testament to the fact
how extraordinary the whole situation was that I wasn’t even shocked by
this display of profanity.
“That’s my house.” He pointed at a spot down in the valley. “And it’s on fire.”

About Cora Buhlert:

Cora Buhlert was
born and bred in North Germany, where she still lives today – after time
spent in London, Singapore, Rotterdam and Mississippi. Cora holds an MA
degree in English from the University of Bremen and is currently
working towards her PhD. Cora has been writing since she was a teenager,
and has published stories, articles and poetry in various international
magazines. When she is not writing, she works as a translator and
teacher.

Friday, April 15, 2016

Here is our weekly round-up of interesting links about speculative
fiction from
around the web, this week with comments on the StarWars: Rogue One trailer, the season finale of Sleepy Hollow and the TV show Hunters, discussion of the new Dragon Awards, an uproar involving the HWA's Bram Stoker Awards as well as the usual mix of writing advice,
interviews, reviews, con
reports and crowdfunding projects as well as free online fiction.

About the Speculative Fiction Showcase

We are a blog about all things indie science fiction, fantasy and horror. Read interviews with and guest posts by spec fic writers and keep current on news from the SFF world and the latest spec-fic releases.